TED has created a playlist of talks on the nature of being creative.
Visit TED’s Blog in the link for their selection of talks that touched on the aspects and nature of creativity, such as:
– lessons that creative people should embrace
– the genius we have within us all
– how the technical-minded can build up their creative muscle Continue reading
I’ve just updated my page on “Awesome Reads” with more titles on the subject of creativity and innovation.
Have a look at them by clicking here: Awesome Reads.
I got these amusing images in my email. You’ve probably seen them before too.
Have a look at the answers given to some test questions. The students were of course “not wrong”. Although they may have scored “zero” for a test on knowledge, I think they still scored top marks for creative and “not wrong” answers.
Looking from a different perspective, were they really “wrong”?.
I know what you are thinking: they were being tested for their knowledge and grasp of the subject, so they should have given the answers expected to prove it. I do not disagree with this, because they are in an institution to learn and a form of assessment is required from time to time to gauge their knowledge.
But on the other hand, the teacher should also encourage creative thinking. Continue reading
Got an idea for the next big thing?
Do you believe your idea will bring incredible impact to people’s lives?
Is it new, fresh, exciting and bold?
Can it meet the following:
Then the good news is, Richard Branson, billionaire Chairman of the Virgin Group, wants to hear it.
Don’t just take my word for it: Go here to find out more and see what it takes.
I just read this article and found the writers’ (Des Dearlove and Stuart Crainer, founders and directors of the Thinkers50) arguments quite compelling, about the importance of management ideas today.
In any field, including business, ideas are important. A simplistic notion, maybe, but with implications. Every idea brings with it its own uniqueness and potential for the field it is related to. Businesses struggle when faced with new threats to their way of doing things: the production and delivery of their services at speed, advertising and promotion in an age of message overkill, recruitment of the right talent, diminishing resources, etc. New entrants keep overturning traditional ways of doing things, and that’s why old solutions do not have much impact anymore. Business thinkers provide fresh perspectives and solutions produced from their research and insights, and it pays sometimes to listen to their wisdom to benefit from their ideas.
The simple reason is this: management ideas helps management gets things done.
Read the article here.
Someone sent me this link on Facebook. After one look at it I knew I just had to share it here as well. This dad is so creative at capturing and framing his kids in a whimsical way. I enjoyed his work. In the interview in the article, he also said he got his inspiration from… who else? His kids!
Check out all his photos here.
Having more perspectives is an excellent way to widen your knowledge, view and attitude towards a subject. Its about taking the effort to see what others see, view a subject from different angles, accepting other people’s accounts or views of it.
If anyone is serious about being more creative, then having this attitude should be intrinsic and automatic. It may require shedding off habits acquired from years of conformity, rigid thinking there’s only one view or one way to “do it right”, and accept that there’s “more than meets the eye” (…read on here).
Awesome products, will bring a smile on some faces. See here.
The catalyst to creative ideas is divergent thinking. This is opposite of linear thinking, which is our usual habit when facing a problem and thinking up solutions. By linear I mean thinking that A leads to B and to C and so on. Like thinking there is only one use for a paper clip for example, and we don’t consider other possibilities. Did you know how a paper clip could help one man obtain a new house? (More of this story here).
Divergent thinking makes you think up several possibilities from a single idea. To do this you need to broaden your view and hold back logic and assumptions. You need to consider ALL possibilities, no matter how remote, weird, wacky or crazy they may sound. This is the essence of what lateral thinking is all about, as coined by Ed De Bono.
“Thinking” is not a monopoly of a few: anyone can do it. Yeah it sounds like a cliché, but this is the only tool you need to start being more creative. Continue reading
I just love this idea! Have you had an experience shopping for grocery, where you can’t find more information about the product, its price, make comparisons, and more? You just need more information, and worse, there’s no staff to be found. Here’s a nifty way to get round that. (click here)
Creativity Workshop 